Paris, France - Most of the French people believe that religion is playing a key role in their lives, despite century-long secularism and religion marginalization in the European country, a new poll by the French IVOP institute has shown.
"If past is any indication, man-made ideologies have failed to brush aside religion from our lives no matter how powerful and liberal such ideologies are," priest Michel Le Long told IslamOnline.net Tuesday, March 6, commenting on the results of the recently released survey.
"Religion, unlike secularism and other man-made ideologies, meets our spiritual needs and provides us with answers to questions about this life, the hereafter, destiny and fate."
The pollsters, who questioned 90 people across France whether religion was important for them, showed that 70 percent of the French have a natural affinity for one of the three divine religions against atheist 27.6 percent.
Some 64 percent said they feel close to Catholicism, three percent to Islam, 2.1% to Protestantism and 0.6% to Judaism.
Long said the communist Soviet Union had tried in vain to get rid off all religious beliefs once and for all.
"But this ideology (communism) proved futile, and places of worship were re-opened once again," he said.
"By the same token," added Long, "the French Revolution (1789-1799) came to oppress in an unprecedented way the Catholic clergy, but gave in in the end of the day to the powerful religion and reconsidered its anti-religion campaigns."
Distinction
Sociologist Vincent Gissiere said the new poll is drawing a line between a "secular country" and a "spiritual society."
"True that the state succeeded in secularizing its entire institutions, but its secular polices have had little effect on French society, which is still longing for spirituality," he told IOL.
Gissiere said the French elite were mistaken in believing that secularism could replace religion.
"They wanted to make secularism the state religion," he said. "But they did not realize that secularism is an institutional system to regulate society and state institutions."
On 9 December 1905, a law was passed in France separating the church and the state. This law was based on three principles: the neutrality of the state, the freedom of exercise of religion, and public powers related to the church.
The law states: "The Republic neither recognizes, nor salaries, nor subsidizes any religion."
According to the CIA World Fact Book, Roman Catholics constitute between 83-88 percent of the French population followed by Muslims between 5-10 percent, Protestants two percent and Jews one percent.
France is home to some six to seven million Muslims, the largest Muslim minority in Europe. By Hadi Yahmid, IOL Correspondent